There’s an invasion under way in the pizza industry. Everyone from baristas to burger chefs, it seems, wants a slice of the action. The founders of Wetzel’s
Pretzels, for example, put their own twist on pizza last year
with Blaze Pizza ( blazepizza.com), while Chili’s Grill & Bar
rolled out a line of pies and flatbreads in early 2013. Smashburger founders Tom Ryan and Rick Schaden launched Live
Basil Pizza ( livebasilpizza.com) in Denver earlier this year.
And leading the offensive were Scott and Ally Svenson, who
co-founded Seattle-based MOD Pizza ( modpizza.com) in
2008 after making their fortune with Seattle Coffee Company in the United Kingdom.

For independent operators, all of these big names—and thebig bucks they attract—add up to stiffer competition at thehigher end of the market. But this trend also reveals somethingabout consumers’ tastes—more discerning, increasingly sophis-ticated, and, yes, a little pricier than you might expect. Peoplestill like inexpensive, quick-service pizza, and they still enjoythe upscale “slow food” experience, but there’s an in-betweenniche—called “fast casual”—that’s ripe for exploitation. Wheredo you fit in?

By reviewing the past year’s overall numbers and examining
the trends in some detail, the Pizza Power Report has been
designed to help you plan for a more profitable 2014. We’ve
culled data from a range of key industry sources, including
CHD Expert, Technomic, Mintel, the National Restaurant
Association (NRA), Euromonitor and RestaurantData.com.
Let’s get started!

Predicting Pizza

It has been particularly difficult this year to estimate the pizza
industry’s growth because our sources have not been unanimous in their analyses. But after weighing a wide range of factors, PMQ is predicting a modest increase of 1.16% in overall

PMQ’s annual Pizza Power Report provides an in-depthlook at the current pizza industry and an insightfulglimpse into its future.

The Power of

PIZZA

2014 STATE-OF-THE INDUSTRY REPORT

By Rick Hynum

Click here for exclusive video
coverage of the 2014 Pizza
Power Report.